Nelson Visits U.s. Missile Sites In Europe

WASHINGTON — Rep. Bill Nelson returned here Tuesday after an extensive trip to Europe that included a tour of Pershing 2 missile sites in West Germany.

Nelson, a Melbourne Democrat, said discussions with U.S. military personnel and local officials in West Germany convinced him that the country has accepted the Pershing 2 as an essential component of the NATO deterrent force.

In recent elections, West German political parties have based their campaigns on opposition to the Pershing 2s, which they view as a barrier to an arms-control agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union.

Nelson said he believed that only a small minority of Germans shared this view.

Manufactured by Martin Marietta in Central Florida, the Pershing 2 was not the only Central Florida concern that rated a stop on Nelson's itinerary.

In Lille, France, Nelson toured a driverless, computerized rail transit system similar to one that a French consortium has proposed building between Walt Disney World and the International Drive tourist area in Orlando.

Nelson also rode the TGV high-speed train, which cruises at 170 miles per hour. An American company with the rights to market the TGV in the United States is competing for the franchise to build a high-speed system in Florida. Nelson said he was impressed by the efficiency of both systems.

He also visited the French facility that manufactures the Ariane rocket, the space shuttle's rival for placing communications satellites in orbit.

In his capacity as a subcommittee chairman, Nelson later joined a trip sponsored by the House Science and Technology Committee.

The committee was on hand to represent Congress in the Paris Air Show, the premier event for the international aerospace industry.